- Industry: Broadcasting & receiving
- Number of terms: 5074
- Number of blossaries: 1
- Company Profile:
The largest broadcasting organisation in the world.
Global warming refers to the increase in the earth's surface (or near-surface) temperature in recent decades due to higher levels of greenhouse gases, and the projected worsening of this effect over time.
Industry:Natural environment
The greenhouse effect keeps the earth's average temperature at around 14°C. Without it, the planet would be too cold to support human life. Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere raise the earth's temperature by trapping energy from the sun after it has hit the earth's surface, rather than allowing it to escape back into space.
Industry:Natural environment
Natural and industrial gases that trap heat from the Earth and warm the surface. The Kyoto Protocol restricts emissions of six greenhouse gases: natural (carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane) and industrial (perfluorocarbons, hydrofluorocarbons, and sulphur hexafluoride).
Industry:Natural environment
Grey water is waste water from baths, showers, washing machines, dishwashers and so on - in other words, water that has been used in the home but does not contain bodily waste - which can be reused for lawn and garden irrigation, say, or for flushing toilets.
Industry:Natural environment
Electrically powered systems that tap the stable, residual heat stored immediately below the surface of the earth to provide heating and hot water for homes and offices. Also known as geothermal heat pumps. See also geothermal energy.
Industry:Natural environment
Hardwoods come from broad-leaved trees, usually (but not always) deciduous. They are typically (but, again, there are exceptions) denser than softwoods, which come from coniferous trees. Because hardwoods are generally more resilient than softwoods, they are commonly used for making furniture and flooring, and in construction, particularly for exterior work. The use of tropical hardwoods is a contributor to deforestation, linked to climate change and reduced biodiversity.
Industry:Natural environment
The name given to a graph published in 1998 plotting the average temperature in the Northern hemisphere over the last 1,000 years. The line remains roughly flat until the last 100 years, when it bends sharply upwards. The graph has been cited as evidence to support the idea that global warming is a man-made phenomenon, but some scientists have challenged the data and methodology used to estimate historical temperatures. (It is also known as MBH98 after its creators, Michael E. Mann, Raymond S. Bradley and Malcolm K. Hughes.)
Industry:Natural environment
Hummer is the brand name of a 4x4/off-road vehicle manufactured by General Motors and styled after the US military's high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle (HMMWV, or Humvee). The Hummer is widely criticised for its very poor fuel economy.
Industry:Natural environment
A hybrid car is one that has both a petrol engine and an electric motor and switches between them according to the driving conditions. It is different from a dual-fuel vehicle, which uses two types of liquid fuel.
Industry:Natural environment
Hydrocarbons are compounds made up of hydrogen and carbon only. All fossil fuels - such as coal, oil and gas - are hydrocarbons, until they are burnt when they mix with oxygen, creating (amongst other gases) CO2.
Industry:Natural environment
